Coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus



July 8, 1924.

LOVE

COIN CONTROLLED MECHANISM FOR DISPENSING APPARATUS 'l 11, I 1 hing" im l Illln I Filed March 1,. 1920 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Jul 8. 1924.

COIN CONTROLLED MECHANISM FOR DISPENSING APPARATUS Filed March 1. 1920 2' Sheets-Sheet 2f 1,500,195 W. R. LOVE J PM, a Y

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. I |lrgadillilr M///z/ WITNESSES v Q I ATTORNEY Patented July 8, 1924.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM R. LOVE, OF ARMOUR, NORTH CAROLINA.

COIN-CONTROLLED MECHANISM FOR DISPENSING AIPPARATUS.

Original application filed October 28,

1919, Serial No. 334,010. Divided and this application filed March 1, 1920. Serial No. 362,246.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, VVILLLAM R. LOVE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Armour, in the county of Columbus and State of North Oarolina,-have-invented a new and useful GoinC0ntrolled Mechanism for Dispensing Apparatus, of which the following is a specification. p

This invention has reference to coin controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus and its object is to provide means whereby accessible manipulating means may be rendered active to dispensing apparatus on the insertion of an appropriate coin. a

This application is a division of my application Serial No. 334,010, filed Oct. 28,

1919, for dispensing apparatus, in which apparatus containers and liquids deposited in such containers by the action of the apparatus, are delivered to customers on the proper operation of the apparatus rendered possible by the insertion of a suitable coin.

In accordance with the invention, a constantly accessible handle or manipulating lever is temporarily coupled to the dispensing apparatus by a suitable coin introduced through acoin slot or other proper entrance, but in the absence of a coin the manipulating lever may be moved without affecting the dispensing apparatus. Provision is made for arresting an introduced coin in the interlock ing position 'to be releasedwhen the manipulating lever has been actively moved to a certain extent, such active movement being sufiicient to cause the operation of the. dispensing apparatus.- L

The invention will be best understood from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, with the understand ing, however, that the invention is-not confined to any strict conformity with the showing in the drawings, but may be changed and modified so long as such changes and modifications mark no material departure from the salient features of the invent-ion as expressed in the appended claims.

In the drawings, 1

Fig. 1 isa faceview of a portion ofthe casing of thedispensingapparatus, showing the coin-controlled mechanism partly in elevation and partly in section;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 22 of Fig.

1, the section being on .a larger scale than theshowing ofFig.1;, 'i i Fig. 3 is a section somewhat similar to that of Fig. "1 but drawn on a larger scale and omitting certain parts; a

Fig. 1 is a section similar tothat of Fig. 2 but of less extent and drawn on the scale ofFig.3; V Fig. 5 isa view similar to but less extensive than that of Fig. 1 and showing in section some parts which are shown in elevationin Fig. 1, the scale being that of Fig. 3

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6 6 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a section on the line 7-7, of Fig. 6; l v a Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a one-way gravity latch for operating the coin trip or stop lever;

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the cointrip or stop lever. Y 7 Referring to the drawings, there isshown a portion of a casing 'l having a forward extension 2 surmounted by a table or shelf 3 forming the cover-of the extension. Within the extension 2 there is a frame 4 including end members 5, 6, respectively,near the bottom of which there is mounted a rod 7 upon which there is'supported the lower end of a rock lever 8 rising upwardly through the frame 6 and through a. slot,

9 in the self 3. The slot 9 is relatively narrow and extends from front to :rear of the shelf 3 so as to serve as a guide for the lever 8 which rises above the shelf 3 into accessible position and terminates in the handle 10 which may be readily' grasped by the hand. The -slot.9 is covered by a slide 11 mounted in guides 12 and this slide is of suflicient length to always cover the slot 9 in either extreme and all intermediate movements of rocking of the lever 9. Also mounted on the rod 7 and located immediately to the rear of the lever 8, in the normal position of the parts, is another substantially upright lever 13. The lever 13 is provided with a side entering slot lwith a downwardly slanting bottom wall-15, the slot 1 1 with the bottom wall 15 constituting a; gravity track or guideway for coin 16 utilized to serve as a connection between the levers 8 and 13. The lever 8 carries on the face towardthe lever 13- a hookshaped lug 17 with the hook end spaced away from the; corresponding face of the lever S-Lto'enter an inset portion 18 of the slot 14, so that the hook 17 is out of the path of a coin rolling on edge downwardly through the slot 14 along the slanting wall 15, the space between the hook-shaped lug 17 and the corresponding faces of the lever B forming a socket to receive the coin 16. The hook 17, where in line with thetravel of the coin 16 through slot 1 1 has a slanting bottom portion 19 conforming to the slant of the surface 15.

Carried by and depending from, the shelf 3, within the forward extension 2 of the casing 1, is a coin chute 20 which may be of approximately quadrantal curvature although such particular shape is not obligatory. The upper end of the coin chutemay be approximately level with the shelf 3 and the lower end is presented into close relation to the entering end of the slot 14 when the lever 13 is in its rearmost position so that at such time a coin deposited in the coin chute through the coin slot will gravitate into the slot 1 1 in the lever 13 and roll along the wall 15 into the hook 17, so that by providing means for stopping the coin in engaging relation with the hook 17, the levers 8 and 13 are locked togethers'o long as such conditions prevail. Then by grasping the handle 10 and pulling forwardly on the lever 8, the lever 13 is forcedflto participate in the movement of the lever 8 because the two levers are locked together by the inserted coin. Ordinarily the levers 8 and 13 are held in the retracted position shown in Fig. 2 by a spring 21' in the frame 6.

Connected to the lever 13, by a pivot pin 22, is a pull bar 23 constituting a connecting link between the lever 13 and the dispensing" mechanism of the machine, so that whenever a proper coin is inserted and the lever 8 is pulled forwardly, the pull bar is actuated correspondingly and the dispensingoperation takes place. I

Entering the slot 1 1 in the lever 13 and located high in said slot so as to be above a coin traveling therealong is a lever 24: with anose portion 25 extending along the slot 14. near the upper end thereof toward the discharge end of the chute 20. his nose end of the lever has a curved lower face 26 conforming generally is shape to the peripheral curvature of the coin 16. The curved face 26 at the end remote from the nose 25 merges into a depending tongue 27 ofsuch length as to be normally in the path of the coin 16 and thus arrest the coin n the slot 14 so long as the lever maintains its normal position, said normal position being determined by a spring 28 fast at one end to the lever 13 and at the other end engaging one'arm 29 of the lever 24,such arm being that remote from the nose 25 and said nose then engaging the upper, endof the slot 14.

That end portion of the frame 6 remote from the chute 20 is provided with a cross piece 30 011 which is pivotally mounted a gravity latch 31 having angularly related edges 32 in the path of the arm 29 of the lever 24:, so that when the lever 13 is pulled forwardly by the lever 8 when locked to it, the arm 29 will ride over the latch 31, without rocking the lever 24 to an extent to carry the tongue 27 out of the path of the held coin 16, but on the return move ment the gravity latch 31 is held by a pin 32 or otherwise, thus causing the lever 24 to rock and. thereby release thecoin to gravitate downwardly along the slanting wall 15 and so escape from locking relation to the two levers 8 and 13. As soon as the arm 29 of the-lever 2 1 has passed the latch 31, the spring 28 returns the lever to its'original position into the path of a coin entering the slot 14' by Way of the chute 20. r

The entering end of the coin chute 20 is provided with a cut-off plate or strip 33 connected to a link 34, see Fig. 6, and this link'is connected to one end of a rock lever 35, which, in turn, is connected by a-link 36 to one end of another rock lever- 37, mounted on a fixed part ofthe frame of the machine. The pull. bar 23 is pivoted to that end of the lever 37 remote from the link 36, so that when the pull bar.

is operated by the lever 8 so as to move-the lever 13 through the intermediar of, an inserted coin, the entrance of anot er coin into the coin chute 20 is prevented by the passage of the slide 33 across the coin chute. On the return of the lever 8 to its first position the chute 20' is again freed for the in;- sertion of another coin. In this way there is no danger of clogging the machine in the attempt to put two or more coins in the machine at one time.

What is claimed is:

1. Ina coin controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus, a manipulating lever accessible to a customer, another'lever associated with the first-named leverand provided with a coin passage therethrough, a coin stop carried by the second lever, coin holding means carried by the first lever and movable into the path of a coin traversing the passage through the second lever, a coin chute for directing the coin into such passage for positively locking the levers'together, said stop being actuated to release the coin during the return movement of the locked levers for unlocking said levers;

2. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus a manipulating lever accessible to a customer, another lever mounted to' move about the same axis as the first lever and provided with a coin passage theretil through in a plane transverse to the plane of the movement of the levers, coin engaglng means carried by the manipulating lever and transversely entering the slot in the second lever to receive a coin traversing said slot, whereby said levers are positively locked together, and connections from the second lever to dispensing parts to be actuated.

3. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus an accessible manipulating lever rockable about an ax1s,'another lever mounted on the same axis with the two levers capable of independent or joint movement and the second lever being connected to dispensing apparatus, said second lever having a coin passage laterally therethrough and provided with a slanting bottom to the passage, a stop lever for a coin carried by the second lever and entering the passage in the path of coins traversing the passage, means on the first lever for connecting the levers through the intermediary of an inserted coin, and trip means on a fixed portion of the apparatus and located in the path of the stop lever for causing the release of an inserted coin.

4. In coin controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus a manipulating lever, another lever associated therewith and connected to dispensing mechanism, the second lever having a coin passage therethrough With a downwardly slanting bottom, means carried b the first named lever to engage a coin in t e second named lever to lock the levers together, a stop lever for an inserted coin and carried by the second lever normally in the path of the inserted coin to arrest the movement of the coin through the lever, and a one-way latch on the fixed part of the mechanism for engaging the stop lever to move it out of the way of a coin to permit the escape of the coin from engagement with the levers.

5. In a coin controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus a manipulating lever accessible to a customer, another lever associatedwiththe first lever and the latter being movable with or without the second lever, connections between the second lever and the dispensing apparatus with which the coin controlled mechanism is connected, a coin chute leading to the second lever, a slide for opening and closing the chute, and lever and link connections between the second lever and the slide to cause the closing of the chute by the slide while the manipulating lever, with the second lever attached thereto, is being actuated.

6. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus, a manipulating means accessible to a customer and comprising a rockable lever, another lever associated with the first-named lever and provided with a recess constituting a conduit for a coin, the first-named lever having a lug movable into the coin conduit of the second lever in position to engage that side of a coin within said recess which is next to the second lever to positively lock the levers together, a pivoted stop member carried by the second lever and normally located within the path of the coin,-and meansin the path of the stop means when thelevers are cooperatively moved to cause the release of the coin when the manipulating lever has reached a predetermined point on-the return stroke of said lever.

7. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus, a manipulating lever accessible to a customer, another. lever associated with the first-named lever and having a coin passage therethrough, a coin check carried by the second lever in normal position to arrest the movement of a coin through the coin passage in said secondnamed lever, a coin chute for directing the coin into the passage of the second lever to positively lock the levers together, and one-way gravity means in the path of the com-engaging means and positioned to be inactive to the coin stop means on the forward movement of the levers and to engage the coin stop means on the return movement of the levers to release the coin.

8. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus, a manipulating lever accessibl to a customer, another lever pivoted to swing about the same axis as the firstnamed lever and provided with a coin passage therethrough, a lug on the first-named lever adapted to project through the coin passage and having a laterally turned end spaced from said lever to form between said lug and lever a socket in which a coin is 1% adapted to be seated, and means for temporarily retaining the coin in said socket whereby said levers are positively locked together.

9. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus, a manipulating lever accessible to a customer, another lever pivoted to swing about the same axis as the firstnamed lever and provided with a coin passage therethrough, a lug on the first-named lever adapted to project through the coin passage and having a laterally turned end spaced from the lever to form between said lug and lever a socket to receive a coin moving through said passage, means for retaining a coin in said socket, whereby said levers are positively locked together, and means for releasing the retaining means at a predetermined point in the operation of the locked levers.

10. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus, a manipulating lever accessible to a customer, another lever associated with the first-named lever and provided with a coin passage therethrough, a lug on the first-named lever adapted to project through the coin passage and spaced from the lever to form between said lug and lever a socket to receiv a coin moving through said passage, and means in the coin passage located in alinement with said socket and operable towards said socket for temporarily locking the coin inrthe socket during a predetermined movement of the.

levers whereby said levers are positively locked together.

11. In a coin-controlled mechanism for dispensing apparatus, a pivoted manipulate lating lever and having a coin passageway extending transversely therethrough in a plane at right angles to the plane in which the lever swings, said manipulating lever being swingable to bring the space between it and the end portionof the lug into alinement with said passageway in the other lever to conjointly. receive a coin, and means for retaining saidcoin temporarily in said passageway between the lug and the ma: nipulating lever, whereby the two levers are locked together. 7

In testimony that Iclaim the foregoing as my own, Ijhave hereto, afiixed my signature.

WILLIAM R. LOVE. 

